Psalm 24 was written by King David. King David was a brilliant warrior and he had never lost a single battle. As a child he protected his father’s sheep against lions and bears and he even killed these predators on several occasions. As a young man he won king Saul’s favour by playing on a harp when the king was anxious. Can you remember how he defeated the giant Goliath? He had a sling and 5 pebbles. David became king of Israel when he was 30 years old and he fought in hundreds of battles. He wrote a song for every experience in his life.

Psalm 24 is a song about the king that returns from a successful battle. The guards on the wall could see the king from a far distance and announced the return of their beloved king. “Open the Gates! Open the Gates!” Why? The guards operating the gates wanted a good reason. “Let the king enter! Our king who is mighty in battle!”

Jesus is the King of all kings for ever. King David looked forward to His coming. The prophets looked forward to His coming. The whole Israel looked forward to His coming. When Jesus entered a city it changed for ever. The people would rush to Jesus to be healed and to listen to His messages. They would go home in awe and tell every-one what they have experienced.

What about me? I have opened the gates of my castle (life) and allowed Him to enter. I opened the door to every room of my castle for Him to enter and to stay!

Be careful now. When Jesus enters a life He comes to take over and to be Master. He takes the keys! Remember, your life will not be the same afterwards…there will be a permanent change.

Read in your Bible Mark 5:1-17

1. What good did Jesus do in this passage?

2. What was the people of Gerasene’s reaction? Why?

3. Did the people welcome Jesus into their city to heal the sick?

4. There are people who block Jesus from entering. They keep the gates locked. Why?

5. Will you allow Jesus to enter your life?

PRAYER:

For further reading see Luke 4:28-30

A “king” is different than a “president”. A President is someone with lots of influence who is the head of the Parliament. The majority of the people voted for his party for him to be the President. The president has a beautiful office and he will delegate to Ministers to do different duties. He will appoint a Minister of Defence and generals to be in charge of the army.

A king is a warrior. He is the head of the army himself and he personally protects his kingdom. In times of trouble the citizens will run to the castle and seek protection from the enemy. The king will gather his army and lead his army into battle.

Psalm 24 asks,” Who is this king?” We know this mighty King is Jesus.

Maybe we should ask where is His kingdom? How big is His castle? Then we will have an idea how mighty Jesus is.

The Kingdom of God is huge. It is difficult to measure it because it is always growing and moving around! It is also called the Kingdom of Light. It is a spiritual kingdom so it can be everywhere…on earth and in space.

The kingdom of every king is the area where this king has authority. The king of the Zulus has no authority in Germany. The Queen of England has no authority in America. So, King Jesus has authority only in certain places and those places will be His Kingdom.

Read in your Bible Psalm 139: 1-24

1. Can people hide from God? Why not?

2. Psalm 139 describes how wonderful God is. What do the following verses say about our King? Verses 5, 14 and 17.

3. Psalm 139 invites God to enter and to walk through every room and every thought of your life. What are the requests in verses 23 and 24. Do you agree with these requests?

PRAYER:

For further reading see John 1:1-14.

Many people don’t believe in God. About 17% of the world call themselves “Atheists”. They don’t believe that there is a spiritual world. They don’t believe in angels and the devil, as well. 17% is by far in the minority of the rest of humans but I can tell you one thing they make a lot of noise!

Many people look at science and reason that everything that exists (“matter”) can be measured. A dog exists because you can measure its height, length, weight, volume and how fast it can run and how loud it can bark etc. The wind exists because you can measure air pressure, the speed of wind and the temperature of wind.

What about dreams? Are dreams real? Many people had dreams that came true. Did you have dreams that felt so real that you were actually sorry to wake up?

God is spirit. We cannot measure God. He is too wonderful. He has no beginning and no end. That is why we call Him “God”. The scientists should change their definition about what is real; it is flawed. 83% of the world believe that the spiritual world is real. Many people had angels appear to them. God spoke OUT LOUD to many people in the Bible, like to Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, David etc. God speaks to people even today through the Bible, nature, in their conscience, voices, dreams and visions and the Holy Spirit. Psalm 24 reminds us to let the King in!

The enemies of God wish that He is not real because then they don’t have to go to Judgement Day. On Judgement Day King Jesus will be the judge. Those who He finds guilty of sin will be condemned to hell forever. Those who He finds innocent will live for millions of years with Him.

Read Psalm 2:1-12

1. What do evil rulers wish to do according to verse 3? Why?

2. What is God’s reaction towards his puny enemies?

3. What advice is there for the rulers of the world in verses 10-12?

4. There is a beautiful promise at the end of Psalm 2. What are you going to do about it?

PRAYER:

For further reading see Acts 12:5-17

Who qualifies to be on the mountain with God? Who qualifies to enter the Most Holy Place in the temple?

David gives us a few qualities:

1) He who lives and speaks and thinks right. The Bible reminds us that we will be judged by every idle word we have spoken. We are told to place all bad thoughts under arrest. We should live in the light where there are no shadows or hidden agendas. Live right!

2) He who does not waste his time on nonsense. Some translations refers to idols and other says “vanities”. That makes sense. God wants you for Himself all the time. You need to be mindful of Him all the time as He is mindful of you all the time. We should pray continuously. I can hear you protest against this. Remember, in heaven everything will all the time just be about Jesus. You have a few years on earth to practice (prepare) for billion years in heaven. When your life spins around Jesus and Jesus alone, you will be a mighty warrior of God. Why are Christians today so weak and powerless?

3) He who does not lie. Satan is the Father of all lies but Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life. It is absolutely scary how easily we lie or twist the truth. SCARY! Paul reminded the church that no liars will enter the Kingdom of heaven and Jesus repeats it in the last chapter in the Bible. We know that the truth shall set you free and we all have experienced that relief after we have told the truth. Why? Why do we lie so easily? It originates from the Garden of Eden. We cover up our nakedness.

Read Revelation 22

1. Name your most favourite things about heaven that is mentioned in the first 5 verses.

2. Who is blessed according to verse 14?

3. Who will stay outside of heaven according to verse 15?

PRAYER:

For further reading: Romans 6,7,8.

Psalm 24:9

Look up, you gates! Rise up, you eternal doors! Then the majestic King will enter.

You will be surprized how many references there are about doors and gates in the Bible! It starts already in Genesis. God puts an angel/sword at the door of Eden so Adam and Eve cannot return to it. God closed the door of Noah’s ark when the time of grace expired.

The angels stood at the door of Lot’s house and blinded the eyes of the condemned sinners. The Israelites had to put blood on the doorposts before the angel of death passed their houses. Samson carried the gate of a city up the hill to conquer the Philistines.

In the New Testament the people rolled the stone away from the grave opening so Lazarus could come out. Rhoda slammed the door in Peter’s face when she saw him… and this was just after the angel opened all the jail gates for him.

What about your door? Did you open the door of your heart so that Jesus the mighty King could enter and fill your life with His glory? Some people are a bit slow to get to this point. You know what hinders us to open the door? Pride. You need to humble yourself to the King. Don’t think you can stand up straight in arrogance and open that door. Every knee will bow before Jesus and you will as well and it can just as well be today. Go on your knees. Confess your pride and rebellion to God and ask Him for mercy.

Revelation 3:20 says, “Listen, I stand at the door and knock. If someone hears my voice and opens the door I will come in and eat with you and you with me.” He knocks. You open. Then there will be a feast. When Jesus enters then things will never be the same again. It will be better.

Read John 10:7-10

1. Jesus says that He Himself is the door. The door of what?

2. How will the sheep be saved?

3. What is the difference between Jesus and the thief according to verse 10.

The glory of God shines from His face. It is full of truth and grace. When you admit to the truth then you will experience His grace.

PRAYER

For further reading: Hebrew 10